Pelosi Confronted by Georgetown Student over ‘Crumbs’ Comments

Hundreds of American companies gave out bonuses over $1,000 to their employees following the passing of Donald Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which certainly acted as good PR for the cuts. Not only would workers see a tax cut, they also saw a bonus on top of it before the tax cuts even took effect!

Most Democrats kept their mouths shut, but Nancy Pelosi made the disastrous decision to call the bonuses “crumbs.” An extra grand is crumbs to a limousine liberal like Pelosi, who has a net worth exceeding $30 million.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz made similar comments, stating, “I’m not sure that $1,000 — which is taxed, taxable — goes very far for almost anyone.” In response, Republican Rep. Todd Rokita introduced a bill called the “Crumbs Act” to make bonuses tax free.

An extra $1,000 may not go far on the coasts, but it does in middle America. Why any Democrat would continue to alienate middle America, especially after their surprise upset in the 2016 election, baffles me.

A Georgetown University student confronted Pelosi during a town hall today, calling out her comments that the benefits Americans received because of the GOP tax law were “crumbs.”
“You’ve spoken about the effects of the Republican tax plan, specifically referring to its effects on average Americans as crumbs,” the student said. As the son of small business owners, I know that it’s helped my parent hire more employees. It’s helped us pay off our mortgage, helped put me through college.”
“Would you still refer to the effects of this tax plan on average Americans as crumbs?” the student asked.

Pelosi decided to try to defend her comments.

“Yes there are some benefits that some are feeling in a particular way,” Pelosi said. “My statement was really a fuller statement that says while they provide a banquet for the top one percent, they are giving some crumbs to other people.” She then proceeded to defend the “crumb” comment for a few minutes, concluding by telling the Georgetown student that “the economics behind the Republican tax law are B.S.”

Watch below (video should begin at 25:35)

Pelosi’s argument really boils down to arguing that because the rich benefit proportionately more, the tax plan is a bad deal. But following any tax cut, even where every person gets the same tax cut as a percentage of income, the rich will benefit more, simply because they earn more. Is that really a surprise?

And what’s the alternative? Pelosi’s comments bring to mind a classic quip from Margaret Thatcher when she rebuffed the socialists of her day. “What the honorable member is saying is that he would rather that the poor were poorer, provided that the rich were less rich,” she argued in 1990. She added: “So long as the gap is smaller, they would rather have the poor poorer. You do not create wealth and opportunity that way. You do not create a property-owning democracy that way.”